


Flowers for Chiaki

by nessarose413



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/M, Gen, Hope's Peak Academy, Human Experimentation, Inspired by Flowers for Algernon, Kamukura Izuru Has Feelings, Kamukura Izuru Project | Hope Cultivation Plan, Multi, Philosophy, Slow Burn, Will Update As Tags Become Relevant, hajime doesn't lose his memories, thank you Big Brains Incorporated for this idea
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:27:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25336111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nessarose413/pseuds/nessarose413
Summary: Transformed by a procedure that has allowed him to become intelligent and talented beyond his wildest dreams, Izuru Kamukura (formerly Hajime Hinata) documents the progression of the Kamukura Project's effects on him, and his struggle to maintain his former life, friendships, and sense of humanity when everything around him suddenly seems so insignificant in the grand scheme of things.-(What if Hajime didn't lose his memory when he became Izuru? And what would happen if, over time, the effects of the Kamukura project started to wear off on their own?)
Relationships: Hinata Hajime/Nanami Chiaki
Comments: 13
Kudos: 40





	Flowers for Chiaki

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to my second fic on Ao3! I've had this idea in my head for a while (about eight months, in fact), but life has been crazy lately. This story explores a world in which the Kamukura project is a gradual series of experiments, rather than one single procedure, and it doesn't affect Hajime's memory at all. It was loosely inspired by Flowers for Algernon, for reasons that.... well, you'll see. Happy reading!!

“Alright, class dismissed. Be back in half an hour for afternoon lectures.”

No bells rang on the campus of Hope’s Peak Academy (so as to not disturb the students in its Gifted and Talented program), so the transition between classes was always rather quiet. Hajime Hinata shook his head, trying to bring himself out of the bored daze he had fallen into at some point during the lecture, and began to pack up his things. The other students of the seventy seventh Reserve course filed out around him, leaving the room almost empty. Out of the corner of his eye, Hajime noticed another figure still seated at one of the desks.

“Not going to lunch today, Sato?” he called out to her. The dark haired girl turned her head, looking surprised to see him still in the room. “We can go find a table together, if you’d like. I’m sure there’s still room somewhere in the cafeteria.”

“Oh, no,” she smiled at him apologetically, “that’s okay. I’m just waiting for Mahiru, is all. She was planning to show me around the other side of campus today.”

 _Right._ Hajime instantly remembered the girl Sato was talking about. Mahiru Koizumi, a member of the elite Talented course, was apparently one of Sato’s oldest friends, and Sato had been gushing about her excitedly for the past few days. They likely wanted some privacy, since it was so rare that the talented students and the reserve students were allowed to mingle with one another.

Hajime figured he shouldn’t get in the way. He gave an awkward wave goodbye, and took his leave. The walk across campus to the cafeteria was long and quiet.

\----

Ten minutes later, Hajime found himself wandering through a garden. The cafeteria hadn't been full, but he couldn’t seem to find a single group of people he’d feel comfortable sitting with.

Instead, he took his lunch and left the building, searching for somewhere to sit outside and eat. Eventually, he stumbled upon a not-quite hedge maze just outside the Talented building complex. The shrubbery around him was in full bloom with flowers of every color, and the early afternoon sunlight reflected off the stone path beneath him. Up ahead, a fountain was trickling in the middle of a clearing, surrounded by cherry trees. It was breathtakingly beautiful. Hajime assumed that some talented student, possibly a botanist or gardener, had a hand in its upkeep. Every corner of the campus was full of past senior projects; marks of the student body’s genius. Hope’s Peak was more than just a school. It was a community of innovators, making the world a better place - reserve course students excluded, of course.

As Hajime Hinata wandered the campus of Hope’s Peak Academy, he couldn’t help but feel disappointed. Coming here had been his only dream since childhood, but what now? Barely the first week of classes had passed by, and he was already having second thoughts about his decision to enroll.

Finally reaching the fountain, he took off his uniform jacket and sat down on its concrete base. The midday sun illuminated the flowing water behind him. Hajime sighed. At least the weather was nice.

\--------

Coming out to the garden during lunchtime became Hajime’s secret routine. Sato always seemed to be busy, and after two or three days in a row of declined invitations, Hajime stopped asking.

As he made his way through the hedges towards his usual seat by the fountain, he heard something. Footsteps.

 _Great,_ Hajime thought bitterly, _Looks like my spot’s already occupied._ He sighed. As he turned around to leave, he ran into someone. Startled, he snapped his head towards the person he’d bumped into and froze. A girl wearing the brown blazer that identified the students of the talented course was pressed into his shoulder, and she didn’t seem to be moving at all.

_Do something do something do something get out of the way apologize SOMETHING!!_

Hajime tried to speak, but no words came out. Instead, he stood there awkwardly, unmoving; waiting for the girl to make the first move. After about twenty seconds that felt like forever, he heard a faint noise that sounded like video game music, and the girl finally took a step back and looked up at him.

_That was weird. Who even is she?_

Finally able to see her face, he took in the stranger’s appearance. She was shorter than him by about six inches, and had pale pink, shoulder-length hair. Her bangs hung in her tired, disinterested eyes, and she was looking at him blankly.

“Are-- are you okay?” Hajime stuttered. She took a pause, as if processing what he had just said.

“Yeah.” Her voice was just as flat as her expression.

Then, without another word, she looked back down at the portable game console she was holding, and walked right past him.

Still in shock, Hajime blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“Gala Omega, right?” He thought he recognized the music coming from her console. The girl stopped walking abruptly, made a quiet noise of surprise, and spun back around to face him. Her face brightened.

“So you know it?” she asked. She started bouncing on her toes in excitement. “You’re, like, the first ever!”

“Uh,” Hajime wasn’t sure how to react to that, “yeah?” The girl practically leaped forward until she was almost right up against Hajime’s chest, locking eyes with him. She leaned in close to his face and started babbling enthusiastically.

“It’s such an old game! It’s a classic, don’t you agree? There’s nothing else like it in the whole genre!”

“Yeah!” He said, subtly leaning back to get some personal space, “I once played through it five times in a row.” At that, the girl grabbed his hands and squeezed them tightly.

“Are you serious?!” she squealed.

“YES.” Hajime stepped back and pulled his hands away. This was getting too intense for his liking. He shut his eyes and took a breath. “Cross my heart.”

The girl seemed to finally realize he wanted some space, and turned away from him slightly, breaking eye contact by looking back down at her game. Hajime noticed she was still smiling to herself.

“I know how tough that is,” she said quietly. “I did ten in a row once.” At that, Hajime laughed sheepishly.

“That blows mine out of the water.”

“It’s just…” the girl took a second, choosing her words. “I’ve never met anybody who could play games as much as me before.” She looked back up at Hajime. “Someday, I want to see your very best run, alright?”

“Sure. You got it.” Hajime looked down at his shoes.

He doubted he could impress a talented student with anything he did.

Suddenly, from the distance, he heard a voice call out.

“Oh, there you are!” Hajime and Chiaki both looked out to see who was speaking. A neatly dressed young woman, maybe four or five years older than them at most, trotted gleefully down the garden path towards them. A long orange ponytail swung behind her as she waved.

The woman grinned. “You must be Nanami! Pleasure to meet ya.”Hajime realized she was addressing the Talented girl standing next to him.

_Nanami. So that’s her name._

As the woman approached, Hajime could see another figure trailing behind her. It appeared to be another Talented student, wrist firmly grasped in the woman’s hand, looking as though he would rather be anywhere else. His uniform was ill-fitting over his large frame, and his cheeks were red, though whether that was due to embarrassment or the warm weather, Hajime could not tell. Completely ignoring the boy’s whimpers, the woman started speaking again.

“You can call me Chisa Yukizome. As of today, I’m your new homeroom teacher, so who’s with me?” She put up her hands in a play-fighting position, letting go of the Talented boy’s arm. If it was supposed to make Nanami smile, it didn’t work.

As she moved, Hajime caught a glimpse of the clipboard in the woman’s other arm. It appeared to be a student roster. About halfway down the page, he saw a name he recognized.

> **CHIAKI NANAMI: SUPER HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL GAMER**

_Oh. Makes sense,_ Hajime thought. It made him embarrassed to think that this girl had offered to watch him play, when she was clearly much better than he ever would be. Chisa was still babbling at Nanami- _Chiaki_ , Hajime corrected himself. As he did so, he noticed the two women turn to look at him. Chisa glanced down at his uniform, and her expression changed.

“Are you in the Reserve course?” She sounded surprised to see him there, despite the fact that the garden was accessible to all students, regardless of course level. Hajime felt a flare of agitation, but tried to keep his voice level.

“Yes, ma’am.” Chiaki looked at him for a second, and then back at Chisa.

“What’s the Reserve course?” she asked.

“You haven’t heard of it?” Chisa responded. “They only just rolled it out last year. It’s an academic track for… regular students.” She spoke politely, though Hajime suspected there were other words she’d rather be using to describe his class. “But,” she continued, “those kids pay through the nose for enrollment.”

Chiaki nodded seriously. “I get it.” An uncomfortable silence ensued. No one seemed quite sure what to say to Hajime. At that moment, he looked over Chisa’s shoulder and noticed the other Talented student, who had remained quiet throughout the conversation, was sneaking away. Following his gaze, Chisa scowled and tightened her grip on her clipboard. She gave Chiaki an apologetic glance, mouthed “I’ll be back,” and took off running after the fleeing student. Despite his mood, Hajime couldn’t help but chuckle as he watched the boy clumsily jog away from his teacher and fall flat on his face, scrambling to avoid having to go to class at all costs.

“You know,” he mumbled, mostly to himself, “for being enrolled in the main course, that guy’s kind of a mess. I thought they’d be way more elite, but…” he suddenly remembered who he was talking to. He looked at Chiaki to gauge her reaction, but she had gone back to focusing on her game. Hajime continued, “Quirks aside, all you guys have incredible talents, dontcha?” He felt a pang of jealousy. “Must be nice, being good at something.

“Whether you have a talent or not, there’s no point getting so hung up over it.” Chiaki said, without looking up. Hajime didn’t realize she’d been listening. She continued, “I mean, it’s not like the ‘be all, end all.’”

“Yeah, but-”

She cut him off. “You have greater freedom than we do.” Her console made a noise that announced her character had died. She leaned back on the fountain, sighed, and restarted the level. “All I have is a pile of video games. Someone like you can go anywhere, and do whatever they want with their life.”

Hajime didn’t know if he believed her, but she had a good point. He was about to tell her as much, when Chisa’s cheerful voice echoed back down the path.  
“Sorry about that!” she called out. She was dragging the regretful student from before behind her. He was making more noises, but no move to get away from her again. Chisa bent down and poked Chiaki on the cheek. “C’mon, you! Let’s get to class.” Chiaki briefly glanced back up at her, but quickly went back to her screen.

Unexpectedly, Chisa looked up at where Hajime was standing and addressed him directly.

“Sorry to drag her away out of left field like this.”

“Hey,” he shrugged, “you do what you’ve gotta.”

Chiaki continued playing. Chisa glanced at her, then back to Hajime.

“She’s not gonna put that handheld down willingly, huh?” Chisa guessed. Hajime shook his head. Considering her options, Chisa put her arm around Chiaki’s waist and scooped the girl up onto her shoulder. “Upsy daisy!” Despite lugging two students behind her, Chisa walked away as quickly as she had arrived.

“Well then,” Chisa gave Hajime one final glance, “I guess I’ll be seeing you around.”

“Uh… yeah.”

As she left the garden, Chisa checked her clipboard again. Hajime heard her say, “Right on! I got the whole class,” before she went out of earshot. Without looking up from her game, Chiaki gave Hajime a little wave goodbye.

Hajime couldn’t suppress the smile that crossed his face as the trio disappeared around a corner. He looked up at the sky, still the same vibrant shade of blue it had been when he arrived.

_I’ve got more freedom than the elites, huh?_

Maybe today wouldn’t be so bad, after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Well, that was the first chapter. If you noticed, the dialogue in the second scene was lifted straight from the English dub of the anime. That won't be true for very long, though, as things are going to start to diverge from canon pretty soon. 
> 
> I have a question for my readers: I'm an artist, as well as a writer, and I've considered adapting this story into a comic instead of a traditional chaptered fic. Would any of you be interested in seeing 1.) illustrations in each chapter, 2.) a complete story rewrite as a graphic novel, or 3.) more chapters in this format, with just text?
> 
> Let me know your preferences in the comments, as well as any other thoughts you may have on this work. Thank you for reading, and I'll see you soon with chapter 2!


End file.
